This story was excerpted from Thomas Harding’s Rockies Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

PITTSBURGH -- Writing the names of second-year players Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle at the top of the daily lineup makes sense to Rockies manager Bud Black.

Depending on roster construction, those could be the top two names on the lineup card for quite awhile. But it doesn’t mean results will be immediate.

Black unveiled the new 1-2 plan for Colorado’s 10-9 home victory over the Padres on April 25. That day, Tovar went 1-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored, and Doyle was 3-for-4 with a walk, two steals and three runs.

But on the team’s 1-5 road trip, Tovar slumped to 3-for-23 (.130) with a double and a stolen base before being given Sunday off to rest a left thumb that was sore from a tag play on Saturday. Even when he put a ball in play hard -- like this double play with no outs and the bases loaded during Thursday’s 5-4, 10-inning loss to the Marlins -- it wasn’t the optimal result.

Doyle’s trip was even tougher, as he went 2-for-23 (.087) with no extra-base hits, one walk, eight strikeouts and one run scored. The first game in Pittsburgh saw Doyle manage a hit, but the more common result was hard-hit balls that Pirates center fielder Michael A. Taylor handled easily.

Doyle finished the road trip going 0-for-4 from the leadoff position in Sunday's 5-3 loss.

But with the early-season plan of Charlie Blackmon leading off and Kris Bryant batting second scrapped because of Blackmon’s struggles and Bryant’s back injury, Black can afford to write a daily lineup with an eye to the future.

“We’ll do that for a while,” Black said. “It looks right. They’re two young players establishing themselves as Major League players. Tovar has the ability to hit at the top of the order. Doyle can, too. With some of the things he can do offensively, with his speed and some power, he’s dangerous. The way things are going as a group, those were two of our more productive players.”

Before the road trip, Tovar was slashing .323/.368/.505 on the season, while Doyle was slashing .284/.336/.422. With a six-game homestand against the Giants and Rangers starting on Tuesday, the pair will have a friendly environment to regain their form and establish a new top of the order.